Summary

Early in 2008 I bought a little, old wooden Folkboat called Valmik. I was going to spend a few months on repairs and begin sailing her around Europe, with Australia being the final destination. As my knowledge of boats improved, so did the thoroughness of the restoration. I decided to become very involved in every aspect of construction, doing almost all of the work myself: making my own sails, doing the fit out and all woodwork, splicing my own rig and wiring in the 12 volt electric circuit. Self-reliance, I suppose, is the goal. Follow the link to my photo albums for a detailed documentation of the work and some videos.

For a long time now, I have been striving to achieve my goals and begin an adventure. I had planned to complete a circumnavigation of the UK and Ireland in the summer of 2015 with my wife. Unfortunately, this will not be possible and I went back to work. Valmik is ready to sail, however, and I am finally in a position to start enjoying her for what she was designed for. Of course there is a never ending list of modifications and enhancements with a small section for repairs. I will be sailing as much as possible and documenting my adventures on this blog.

My plan is to build up to a epic solo sailing Adventure.

Monday, May 23, 2011

finally in the water


I bought Valmik in march 08! The old owner was trying to give the boat away, but no one would take her! I had wanted to learn how to sail for some time, here was a old wooden boat that the yard would be burning if no one took her, this was my chance. The local shipwright convinced me that sailing a little boat like this home would be the trip of a life time. He also volunteered his tutoring and mirror dingy for practise.

The restoration has taken way longer than expected and is still not finished. Out of the three years and two months of owning her, one year and three months have been spent full time on  the reconstruction and one month making the sails for her. My whole life, since buying this folkboat, has be devoted to this cause!

And now she is finally in the water where she belongs. Valmik has been out of the water for over seven years. The planks were mostly in good condition for a 50 year old boat. But the heat was really starting to open them up. It is so good to finally have her in the water :-)
When she was lowered in I quickly jumped on to check how much water would be coming in, (An old wooden clinker built boat, that has been out of the water for a while, will need to soak for a few weeks before the planks take up and all of the leaks will stop) I was expecting lots but was still shocked to see water coming in everywhere along every plank and filling up quite quickly. So I did the best thing I could think of" go for a swim IN my boat".

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